The first game

I was holding my nephew in the standing room behind the right field wall.

We were on Yankee Stadium’s main level, looking down at Carlos Beltran. The Bombers were getting slaughtered by Tampa Ray late in the game. The Rays were on the verge of avoiding a sweep.

“Someday, we’ll be watching you down there, buddy,” I told him.

That’s what my dad said to me at my first game.

Do you remember your first time?

Maybe it was with your dad in the 1950s, when you walked into the old Yankee Stadium. You saw Mickey Mantle get on his horse and chase down fly balls in the outfield, only to later have that topped by watching him smash a 500-foot home run.

Perhaps, like this writer, it was with your family sometime in the 1990s, when you excitedly marched into the House that Ruth Built. You witnessed Don Mattingly make web gem after web gem at first base, and were then treated to his grandiose power with the bat.

Whichever game it was, you’ll never forget it. That game likely got you hooked as a Yankee fan for life.

That type of journey began for someone very close to me yesterday. That would be my 4-year-old nephew, Ryan.

My sister sent me a text message around 10:30 p.m. Friday night.

“You want to go to the Yankee game Sunday? We’re thinking of taking Ryan for his first game, and I’m sure he would love it if his uncle was there.”

Of course, I obliged. I’m not one to pass up a Yankee game, especially one so meaningful.

Ryan was very excited I was joining him, his mom and his dad (his mom and dad being my sister and her boyfriend) for the day. The excitement began in the car, long before we arrived in the Bronx.

But, we eventually got there without wearing ourselves out too much.

We walked into the Great Hall. I held Ryan’s hand as we walked towards our seats in the left-center field bleachers. We sat down and right away Ryan was cheering.

“Go Yankees!” he shouted.

In short, I thought the Yanks might win this one. I had that “we’re going to win today” mentality. What better way to introduce him to the Yankees than by a win?

Those high hopes were dashed pretty quickly, however.

Starting pitcher Michael Pineda got two quick outs in the first inning, only to get absolutely shelled thereafter. Just when it appeared it would be a fast, 1-2-3 frame, he fell apart and let up two two-run home runs and an RBI double. The hitting barrage gave Tampa Bay a 5-0 lead after just one half-inning.

Pineda finished the day having allowed 10 hits in five innings. Four of those 10 hits ended up in the seats.

The Yanks mustered just one run in the form of an RBI double in the bottom of the fourth off the bat of Alex Rodriguez, as the Rays avoided the sweep and took an 8-1 win from New York.

Despite the loss, I think Ryan enjoyed himself and wasn’t so concerned with the final score.

He took in the little things.

In particular, he was fond of how the stadium plays the “Stars Wars” theme during the lineup introductions — as we all know, the Imperial March for the visitors and the main theme for the Yanks.

In fact, I tried to use Ryan’s love of “Star Wars” in order to show him which team we were rooting for.

“The Yankees are the team in white. The team in grey – they’re the bad guys,” I told him.

Not saying it backfired, but he then thought Tampa Bay had Darth Vader-like evil status.

What I was most proud of was his behavior. There were other children his age in our section, moving all over the place and misbehaving. Ryan, on the other hand, sat still for most of the game and drew the attention of some of the other fans.

They complimented him on how well-behaved he was.

For the future, we now know we can take him to a game and can expect good conduct from him.

And hopefully, his good behavior can be rewarded at his next game with a Yankee win.